Atlanta is one of America's fastest-growing cities — but beneath the skyscrapers and highways lie the ruins of a very different Atlanta. A 27-acre railcar repair yard that became a graffiti mecca. A prison farm where 1,000 inmates raised crops and cattle until 1995. A 1996 Olympics stadium left to crumble on a college campus that lost its accreditation. Here are 5 of the best abandoned places in Atlanta, selected from our Abandoned Places Map USA — 5,000+ GPS locations across the United States.
Why Atlanta Is a Hidden Gem for Abandoned Buildings & Urban Exploration
Atlanta's rapid growth paradoxically preserves certain sites — land disputes, jurisdictional confusion and development timelines leave properties in limbo for decades. The city's history of racial segregation, the 1996 Olympics and the collapse of Atlanta's mid-century industrial base all left distinct layers of abandoned infrastructure that urbex photographers have been documenting for years.
1. Pratt-Pullman Yard – 1904 Railcar Repair Complex, 27 Acres of Industrial Ruins and Murals, Kirkwood Neighborhood (Known Location)
Opened in 1904 by Pratt Engineering as a chemical equipment test facility, then acquired by Pullman in 1926 to build and repair luxury sleeping cars, the Pratt-Pullman Yard's 12-building, 27-acre campus in Kirkwood operated until the late 1980s before being abandoned. For three decades its decaying brick buildings and open grounds became one of Atlanta's defining urbex and street art destinations — massive murals covering the factory walls, rusting crane infrastructure and the atmospheric scale of a facility built for Gilded Age railcar production. Film and TV crews have used the site extensively. One of the most iconic abandoned places in Atlanta.
🔗 Learn more: Wikipedia – Pratt-Pullman District
2. Atlanta Prison Farm – 1940s Correctional Farm Closed 1995, 400 Acres of Kudzu-Covered Ruins, DeKalb County (Known Location)
Operating from the 1940s until 1995 on 400 acres in DeKalb County, the Atlanta Prison Farm housed up to 1,000 nonviolent inmates who ran a full working agricultural operation — dairy, livestock, vegetable harvest and a commissary. After closure the property was abandoned, ownership disputed between the City of Atlanta, Fulton County and DeKalb County. A 2009 fire consumed most of the main facility and kudzu vines engulfed everything else. The remaining structures — barns, processing buildings, water towers — rise from a sea of southern vegetation in one of the most atmospheric abandoned places in Atlanta for rural decay photography.
🔗 Also read: Top 5 Best Abandoned Places in the USA →
3. Alonzo Herndon Stadium – 1996 Atlanta Olympics Field Hockey Venue, Concrete Bleachers Crumbling on Morris Brown College Campus (Exclusively on Our Map)
Built for the 1996 Atlanta Summer Olympics field hockey competition and named after Alonzo Herndon — Atlanta's first Black millionaire — the 15,000-seat stadium was donated to Morris Brown College after the Games. When the college lost accreditation in 2002 and enrollment collapsed to fewer than 40 students, maintenance became impossible. The concrete bleachers are now cracked and crumbling, the field overtaken by weeds and the corridors graffiti-covered. One of the best abandoned places in Atlanta for Olympic legacy urbex — a stadium that hosted the world's greatest sporting event now slowly returning to Georgia clay. Exact location available on our Abandoned Places Map USA.
4. Abandoned Atlanta Water Treatment Plant – 1920s Facility on the South River Trail, Rusting Tanks and Concrete Basins, DeKalb County (Exclusively on Our Map)
A 1920s water treatment facility along the South River in DeKalb County — rusting circular filter tanks still in position, the pump house with original machinery housings and the settling basins now filled with vegetation and standing water. The facility was decommissioned when Atlanta's water system was modernized; the surrounding South River Trail now runs alongside the ruins, making this one of the most accessible abandoned industrial sites in the Atlanta metro. One of the best abandoned places in Atlanta for mid-century municipal infrastructure photography. Exact location available on our Abandoned Places Map USA.
5. Abandoned Fulton County Courthouse Annex – 1930s Art Deco Government Building Emptied When Operations Moved, Downtown Atlanta (Exclusively on Our Map)
A 1930s Art Deco government annex building in downtown Atlanta — original WPA-era stonework on the facade, courtroom fixtures partially still in place inside and the distinctive federal building aesthetic of New Deal-era public architecture. When Fulton County consolidated operations into a newer facility, the annex was left vacant, its ornate exterior contrasting sharply with the surrounding modern development. One of the most architecturally distinctive abandoned places in Atlanta for Art Deco government photography. Exact location available on our Abandoned Places Map USA.
Safety Tips for Urban Exploration in Atlanta
- Georgia heat & humidity: Atlanta summers are extreme — always carry water and avoid enclosed structures in midday heat June through September
- Kudzu & wildlife: abandoned Atlanta sites are often deeply overgrown — wear long sleeves, watch for copperhead snakes and check for fire ant mounds before stopping
- Never explore alone — always bring at least one other person and let someone know your location
The urbex code applies everywhere: "Take nothing but photographs, leave nothing but footprints."
❓ FAQ – Abandoned Places in Atlanta
What is the most famous abandoned place in Atlanta?
The Pratt-Pullman Yard in Kirkwood — a 27-acre railcar repair complex opened in 1904 and abandoned in the late 1980s, now covered in large-scale murals and regularly used as a film location. One of the most recognizable industrial urbex sites in the American South.
What happened to the Atlanta Prison Farm?
The Atlanta Prison Farm operated on 400 acres in DeKalb County from the 1940s until 1995, housing nonviolent inmates who ran a full agricultural operation. After closure, a 2009 fire consumed most of the main facility. The remaining structures are now engulfed in kudzu, with ownership still disputed between Atlanta, Fulton County and DeKalb County.
What is Herndon Stadium and why is it abandoned?
Alonzo Herndon Stadium was built for the 1996 Atlanta Olympics field hockey competition and donated to Morris Brown College. When the college lost accreditation in 2002 and enrollment collapsed to fewer than 40 students, the facility became impossible to maintain. The 15,000-seat concrete stadium has been crumbling on the campus ever since.
🎯 Summary
Atlanta's abandoned buildings tell the story of a city that has always been in motion — a railcar yard from the Gilded Age covered in 21st-century murals, a prison farm consumed by kudzu and an Olympic stadium crumbling on an empty college campus. Each of these 5 abandoned places in Atlanta captures a different layer of a city that moves too fast to look back at what it leaves behind.
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